Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown ready to deliver another Zurich title tilt

Sky Sports Golf, Saturday 6pm

The Zurich Classic is playing catch-up after the opening day was ravaged by thunderstorms and the second round must be finished before the third round can commence on Saturday afternoon.

Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley are the shock pacesetters going into the weekend, the unheralded duo having posted 14 under par for their opening 36 holes, following a fourballs 63 with a foursomes 67.

Malnati has played in the Zurich Classic three previous times, missing the cut on each occasion. Hurley has played in four previous Zurichs and qualified for weekend employment only once – the year he finished tied for 80th place. In their first spin as Zurich partners last year, they missed the cut. It is no wonder they went off as 250-1 outsiders.

The volatile nature of this event has been highlighted by the scoring in the foursomes. While Malnati and Hurley have defied the formbook by going bogey-free for two rounds, some other partnerships have seen their Zurich campaigns destroyed by foursomes hell.

Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, for example, teed off for the foursomes just four shots off the lead, but they both hit a tee-shot out-of-bounds at the opening hole and went five over par for the foursomes through just one hole.

Tony Finau and Kyle Stanley were bang in contention until the second hole of the foursomes. Just 70 feet from the flag in two shots at the par-five second, they ended up carding a triple-bogey eight with some X-rated chipping. When the wheels come off in foursomes, it can be spectacular.

It is a gamble, then, to suggest the best bet to win this tournament at this stage is a pair who have completed only four holes of the second-round foursomes, but the ultra-comfortable duo of Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown have laid an excellent platform from which to land an overdue Zurich title.

Kisner and Brown lost a playoff for the inaugural Zurich pairs event in 2017, then led going into the final round last year, before finishing 15th. The evidence of the opening two days indicates it could be third time lucky for these lifelong friends.

Kisner and Brown get along like the proverbial house on fire – they are members at the same golf club in Aiken, South Carolina – and that rapport helped them to a round-one 62 which featured a Kisner hole-in-one at the third.

Kisner is enjoying a fantastic season, highlighted by victory in the WGC-Match Play, inspiring his pal. The pair are three under par through four holes of round two, with Brown facing a birdie putt from three feet at the fifth when play resumes. Converting that short putt will give them a share of the lead with 13 holes of round two to play.

Given the New Orleans weather forecast for the weekend – hot, sunny, with light breezes – having holes in hand looks an advantage even in foursomes. The bad weather has gone and Kisner and Brown have been given an opportunity to press on.

The action resumes at 1pm UK and Ireland time. Kisner and Brown are a best-price 5-1 with Paddy Power.

Recommendation
K Kisner & S Brown
3pts each-way 5-1 Power

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